173131: She has recently become Muslim and is concealing her Islam from her domineering kaafir father

I embraced Islam four months ago and my father does not know yet. I live with my father and my brother only, and my relationship with my father is not good. He says bad words to me and sometimes hits me. I cannot tell him that I am a Muslim, firstly because we do not speak or communicate with one another and secondly because he would go crazy and the situation at home would become even worse. Last week I found out that he booked a stupid holiday for us at the beginning of August, for two weeks during Ramadan, and I cannot tell my father that I do not want to go because he has paid for it and will never let me not go, because he has actually booked it. I do not know what to do and I feel that this test I am facing is very difficult and I cannot do anything about it, and it is making my faith decrease. I hope that you can help me.

Praise be to Allaah.

We ask Allah to make things easy
for you and grant you relief from this distress. We congratulate you on
embracing Islam, the religion of the Prophets and Messengers (peace be upon
them), apart from which Allah does not accept any other religion from
anyone. It is a great gift and immense blessing from Him. What you are
suffering of trials and tribulations, you will come to know that it is not
equivalent to even a moment in which you taste the sweetness of faith and
the comfort of certainty and trusting Allah, may He be glorified and
exalted. With regard to the reward in the Hereafter, what Allah has prepared
for the one who is patient and steadfast, and puts up with hardships for the
sake of His religion, and gives precedence to loving and pleasing Him, is
something that cannot be described. Our Lord, may He be glorified and
exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“No person knows what is kept
hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do”

[as-Sajdah 32:17].

And the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and it
has not entered the mind of man.” Narrated by Muslim, 312.

Dear sister, if you live your
whole life in this world in hardship, misery, worry and distress, one dip in
Allah’s Paradise – may Allah make us and you among its people – will make
you forget all the hardships and difficulties you encountered even if you
were the most miserable of people on earth, to such an extent that you would
swear that you never went through any calamity or problem or misery! If that
is the case for one who is merely dipped once in Allah’s Paradise, how about
if Paradise itself is to be your eternal abode?

So we advise you to be patient
and steadfast. The blessing that you have been given of embracing Islam
requires you to make sacrifices and be patient in doing so. We assure you
that this problem will not last for the rest of your life; rather we are
certain that our Lord, may He be exalted, will answer your prayers and those
of the Muslims who read your story and relief from the situation you are in
will come soon. Who knows, perhaps Allah will guide your father and brother
and they will be a help to you in following your religion.

What we advise you to do is to
show kindness to your father; show him love and let him think that you are
obeying him, even if he insists on travelling in Ramadan, until his attitude
changes and he begins to treat you fairly. It is important that your
thinking should focus on preserving your capital, which is staying in Islam
and adhering to it until you get the opportunity to declare your religion
and show it openly, and adhere to all its rituals and rulings and also call
people to it.

Whether you stay at home or
travel with your father, you can avoid going out of the house as much as
possible and give excuses such as sickness and so on. You can also avoid
mixing with strange men (non-mahrams), and avoid staying up late and seeing
and listening to haraam things. Seek the help of Allah in all your affairs,
for Allah is the best of supporters and helpers. Fear Allah as much as you
can and remember that Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, does not
burden any soul with more than it can bear. He is too merciful to His slaves
to hold you accountable for something you were unable to do and could not
do.

We advise you to go to the
nearest Islamic centre in the city where you live and tell them about your
situation; they will be more able than us to evaluate the circumstances you
are going through and will be better able to give you advice as to what you
should do, whether you should announce your religion openly or continue
putting up with the situation you are in for a little while longer. Praise
be to Allah, there are many trustworthy Islamic centres in your country.